Pharmacology
Pharmacology studies how substances act on living organisms: active compounds, doses, therapeutic and toxic effects. In The Apothecary Diaries, it is the heart of Maomao's expertise, as she doses remedies and poisons, understands interactions and reads the trace of a molecule in a patient's symptoms.
Entries in this discipline
Activated Charcoal
In The Apothecary Diaries, Maomao gives activated charcoal in an emergency. Why does it work? How does adsorption trap toxins? Its real limits.
Bear Bile
Its ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) dissolves some gallstones and protects the liver. Now made synthetically, it is on the WHO essential medicines list.
Datura
In The Apothecary Diaries, datura is used to induce sleep and feign death. We explain its alkaloids, its toxicity, and its role in the history of anesthesia.
The Dandelion
In The Apothecary Diaries, Maomao identifies dandelion as a medicinal herb. We explain its diuretic properties, its inulin, and its culinary uses.
Earthworms in Medicine
Used against fever in Chinese medicine, earthworms contain lumbrokinases that break down clots in the lab. What is proven, what is not, and Maomao's remedy.
Emmenagogue and Abortive Plants
Mostly they poisoned first: jasmine, mugwort, rue and chili stimulate the uterus only at doses toxic to the mother. The pharmacology and history behind them.
Fake Death by Tetrodotoxin
Partly: pufferfish poison can paralyze a person until they look dead, brain still awake. Datura agitates instead of sedating. Mechanisms, real cases, limits.
Four O'Clock Flower
Partly: four o'clock flower seeds hold a protein that ends pregnancy in mice, never tested in women. Mechanism, toxicity and the limits of court lore.
Galenic Formulations
In The Apothecary Diaries, an ointment gets prepared. We explain galenics: how a medicine's form determines how an active ingredient is absorbed.
Ginger
Gingerol triggers the same heat receptor as chili and widens skin vessels, without raising core temperature. Fresh vs dried ginger, and Maomao's warming pastilles.
Kudzu
Its root gives kuzu, a thickening starch, and ge gen, a fever remedy. Why an over-strong infusion turns to glue, and why the vine invades everything outside Asia.
Mandarin Peel
Partly real: chen pi's hesperidin and limonene act on digestion and blood vessels. What lab studies show, what is still tradition, and why aged peel differs.
The Mantis Ootheca
In The Apothecary Diaries, mantis eggs are seen as an aphrodisiac. We describe the ootheca, its structure, and its use in Chinese medicine.
Mugwort
In The Apothecary Diaries, mugwort is one of the court's medicinal herbs. We explain its uses and artemisinin, Tu Youyou's antimalarial drug (Nobel 2015).
Nicotine and Tobacco
In The Apothecary Diaries, macerated tobacco serves as a poison. We explain nicotine, its acute toxicity, and why diluting a poison can make it worse.
Tea and Caffeine
In The Apothecary Diaries, Maomao prescribes tea for its diuretic effects. We explain caffeine, theanine, and how far this strategy really goes.